Just for the Mommas on Mother's Day: Skin Care Tips for Moms

It’s time to celebrate because Mother’s Day is right around the corner! It doesn’t matter how many kids you have or how old they are: you’re always a mom. Whether you spend your days chasing after your toddlers or worrying about your adult children, you deserve a break and some serious pats on the back.

For a Mother’s Day gift, I might not be able to make the dishes in your home clean themselves or make a bouquet of your favorite flowers appear. As your resident skin care whiz, though, there is something I can do…I can give you some skin care tips that are specifically for moms (and grandmas, and great-grandmas, we’re celebrating all of you).

This Mother’s Day, give yourself the gift of confidence with these tips for brighter, healthier, younger skin.

Start Collagen Protection at an Early Age

When it comes to skin aging, men have a natural advantage. Androgens, or hormones like testosterone, cause men to naturally have thicker skin than women. In fact, men have a higher collagen density than women at every age.

Why does this matter? One of the primary reasons our skin ages, sags, and wrinkles is that our natural supply of collagen, a skin-firming and skin-thickening protein, declines over the years. Because men are already starting with thicker skin and higher collagen levels, we age far more quickly than they do. Unfair, Mother Nature, unfair.

To combat this problem, it’s a good idea to start using a skin care product for collagen stimulation at an early age – as young as in your 20s. These products help your body produce more collagen so your skin can enjoy the youthfulness of a man’s skin with the softness of a woman’s skin.

A note to keep in mind: yes, it’s best to start these products when you’re young, but it’s never too late! They can make a noticeable difference in your skin at any age.

Relax, Momma!

If there’s one thing every mother has too much of, it’s stress. Between the logistics of keeping up with your obligations and the emotional pressure of wanting the best for your kids, it’s easy to run yourself ragged.

Pause, take a breath, and relax. Stress can cause a wide range of skin issues – it makes you age more quickly, it triggers breakouts of acne and sometimes chronic skin conditions, and it can even cause stress-induced rashes.

It’s easier said than done but block out some time in your schedule to relax and de-stress. It’s a matter of your health, after all.

Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate

After puberty, women’s bodies produce less natural skin oil than men. Yes, that means we’re less prone to adult acne (small victories!), but it also means our skin tends to be drier than men’s because we have less oil to hold in the moisture. You know what that means: we need to hydrate!

Drink plenty of water, of course, but also be sure to include a daily moisturizer in your skin care routine. A note to keep in mind, though: aim for a fragrance-free moisturizer. Fragrances can be very irritating to the skin, especially when your skin is dry, so keep it fragrance-free to be safe.

Get on a Regular Exfoliation Routine

Many men don’t put much thought into their skin care routine but without realizing it, they’re consistently exfoliating. When a man shaves his facial hair, the razor also scrapes away dead skin cells and debris from the surface of his skin, which is part of the reason for that baby-smooth skin after a fresh shave.

Most women don’t shave our faces, though, so we need to make more of a conscious effort to exfoliate on a regular basis. Use an exfoliator after your cleanser about twice per week to buff away damaged surface skin and let your younger, fresher skin shine through.

There’s also a growing trend toward exfoliating with a dermaplaning razor. Dermaplaning started as a professional skin care treatment, and while it’s still best performed by a professional, there are at-home tools you can use too. Dermaplaning is essentially a very close facial shave, using a razor to scrape away dead skin cells while also removing the tiny hairs we all have on our faces called vellus hairs.

Enjoying Your Renewed Skin on Mother’s Day

Moms sacrifice so much for their families, usually putting yourself and your own needs behind those of your family. As noble as this is, don’t forget that your children watch you and take notes. If you want them to grow up to be confident, self-assured, and able to stand up for the joys they need in life, you have to model that by doing the same for yourself. That can start with just taking time out to relax, pamper yourself, and find your peace.

This Mother’s Day, take the time to thank yourself for all that you do with some “me time.” You deserve it!